Unit-II

The Network Layer

 Network Layer Design Isues

• Store-and-Forward Packet Switching

• Services Provided to the Transport Layer
• Implementation of Connectionless Service
• Implementation of Connection-Oriented Service
• Comparison of Virtual-Circuit and Datagram Subnets
Store-and-Forward Packet
Switching
The environment of the network layer protocols.

fig 5-1
Store-and-Forward Packet
Switching
• A host with a packet to send transmits it to the
nearest router, either on its own LAN or over
a point-to-point link to the carrier.
• The packet is stored there until it has fully
arrived so the checksum can be verified. Then
it is forwarded to the next router along the
path until it reaches the destination host,
where it is delivered.
• This mechanism is store-and-forward packet
switching, as we have seen in previous
chapters.
Services Provided to the Transport
Layer
• The service should be independent of the
router technology.

• The transport layer should be shielded from

the number, type, and topology of the routers
present.

• The network addresses made available to the

transport layer should use a uniform
numbering plan, even across LANs and
WANs.
Implementation of
Connectionless Service
• In this context, the packets
are frequently called
Routing within a datagram datagrams (in analogy with
subnet. telegrams) and
• the subnet is called a
datagram subnet.
Implementation of
Connection-Oriented Service
Routing within a virtual- • In connection-oriented
circuit subnet. service a path from the
source router to the
destination router must be
established before any data
packets can be sent.
• This connection is called a
VC (virtual circuit), in
analogy with the physical
circuits set up by the
telephone system, and
• the subnet is called a
virtual-circuit subnet
Comparison of Virtual-Circuit
and Datagram Subnets

5-4
Routing Algorithms

• The Optimality Principle

• Shortest Path Routing
• Flooding
• Distance Vector Routing
• Link State Routing
Routing Algorithms
The routing algorithm is that part of the network layer
software, responsible for deciding which output line an
incoming packet should be transmitted.
•If the subnet uses datagrams internally, this decision must be made
anew for every arriving data packet since the best route may have
changed since last time.
•If the subnet uses virtual circuits internally, routing decisions are
made only when a new virtual circuit is being set up. Thereafter,
data packets just follow the previously-established route.
•The latter case is sometimes called session routing because a
route remains in force for an entire user session (e.g., a login
session at a terminal or a file transfer).

The properties desirable in a routing algorithm are:

1.Correctness
2.Simplicity
3.Robustness
4.Stability
5.Fairness
6.Optimality
The Optimality Principle
• Optimality principle states that if router J is on the optimal
path from router I to router K, then the optimal path from J
to K also falls along the same route.

• The set of optimal routes from all sources to a given

destination form a tree rooted at the destination. Such a
tree is called a sink tree.

• The sink tree not necessarily be unique, other trees with

the same path lengths may exists.

• The goal of all routing algorithms is to discover and use the

sink tree for all routers.

• Since a sink tree is indeed a tree, it does not contain any

loops, so each packet will be delivered within a finite and
bounded number of hops.
The Optimality Principle

(a) A subnet. (b) A sink tree for router B.

Network Performance Measures

 Two Performance Measures

 Quantity of Service (Throughput)
 How much data travels across the net?
 How long does it take to transfer long files?
 Quality of Service (Average packet delay)
 How long does it take for a packet to arrive at its destination?
 How responsive is the system to user commands?
 Can the network support real-time delivery such as audio and
video?
Types of Routing Algorithms
• Nonadaptive (static)
 Do not use measurements of current conditions
 Static routes are downloaded at boot time

• Adaptive Algorithms
 Change routes dynamically
 Gather information at runtime
 locally
 from adjacent routers
 from all other routers
 Change routes
 Every delta T seconds
 When load changes
 When topology changes
Shortest Path Routing
(a nonadaptive routing algorithm)

• Find the shortest path from a specified source to all

other destinations in the network.
• Given a network topology and a set of weights
describing the cost to send data across each link in
the network
• Shortest path algorithm first developed by E. W.
Dijkstra
Shortest Path Routing (cont..)

• Dijkstra (1959) shortest path alg. Between

two nodes.

• Each node is labeled (in parenthesis) with

its distance from the source node along the
best-known path.
• Initially, no paths are known, so
Shortest Path Routing (cont..)
Mark the source node as permanent.
Designate the source node as the working node.
Set the tentative distance to all other nodes to infinity.
While some nodes are not marked permanent
Compute the tentative distance from the source to all
nodes adjacent to the working node. If this is shorter than
the current tentative distance replaces the tentative
distance of the destination and record the label of the
working node there.

Examine ALL tentatively labeled nodes in the graph.

Select the node with the smallest value and make it the
new working node. Designate the node permanent.
Shortest Path Routing (cont..)

• Each node is labeled (in parentheses) with its distance from the
source node along the best-known path.
• Initially, no paths are known, so all nodes are labeled with infinity.
As the algorithm proceeds and paths are found, the labels may
change, reflecting better paths.
• A label may be either tentative or permanent.
• Initially, all labels are tentative.
• When it is discovered that a label represents the shortest possible
path from the source to that node, it is made permanent and never
changed thereafter.
Example of Shortest Path Routing
 working
• We want to find the shortest path from A to D.
• We start out by marking node A as permanent, indicated by a
filled-in circle.
• Then we examine, in turn, each of the nodes adjacent to A (the
working node), relabeling each one with the distance to A.
• Whenever a node is relabeled, we also label it with the node from
which the probe was made so that we can reconstruct the final
path later.
• Having examined each of the nodes adjacent to A, we examine all
the tentatively labeled nodes in the whole graph and make the one
with the smallest label permanent, This one becomes the new
working node.
• We now start at B and examine all nodes adjacent to it. If the sum of the
label on B and the distance from B to the node being considered is less
than the label on that node, we have a shorter path, so the node is
relabeled.
• After all the nodes adjacent to the working node have been inspected and
the tentative labels changed if possible, the entire graph is searched for
the tentatively-labeled node with the smallest value. This node is made
permanent and becomes the working node for the next round.
Flooding
(a nonadaptive routing algorithm)
 Brute force routing
 Every incoming packet is sent on every outgoing line
 Always finds the shortest path quickly
 Also finds many long paths
 Time to live is set to size of subnet
 Selective Flooding
 Flood only in the direction of the destination
 Practical in a few settings
 Military Applications
 Distributed Databases
 Metric for comparison
Distance Vector Routing
(an adaptive routing algorithm)

• It is also known as Bellman-Ford Routing

Or Ford Fulkerson Algorithm
• It is the Original ARPANET routing algorithm
• Previously used on Internet wit the name RIP.
• Early version of DecNet and Novell’s IPX
• AppleTalk and Cisco routers use improved versions
of this algorithm
 Distance Vector Routing (cont..)
• Distance vector routing algorithms operate by having each router maintain a
table (i.e, a vector) giving the best known distance to each destination and which
line to use to get there.
• These tables are updated by exchanging information with the neighbors.
• Neighboring routers periodically exchange information from their routing tables.
• Routers replace routes in their own routing tables anytime that neighbors have
found better routes.
• Information provided from neighbors
 Outgoing line used for destination
 Estimate of time or distance
 can be number of hops, time delay, packet queue length, etc.
Distance Vector Routing example

(a) A subnet. (b) Input from A, I, H, K, and the new routing table for J.
 Distance Vector Routing
• Consider how J computes its new route to router G. It knows that it
can get to A in 8 msec, and A claims to be able to get to G in 18
msec, so J knows it can count on a delay of 26 msec to G if it
forwards packets bound for G to A.
• Similarly, it computes the delay to G via I, H, and K as 41 (31 + 10),
18 (6 + 12), and 37 (31 + 6) msec, respectively.
• The best of these values is 18,
• so it makes an entry in its routing table that the delay to G is 18
msec
• and that the route to use is via H.
• The same calculation is performed for all the other destinations,
with the new routing table shown in the last column of the figure.
 The Count to infinity Problem
• Distance vector routing works in theory but has a serious drawback
in practice: It reacts rapidly to good news, but leisurely to bad
news.
• To see how fast good news propagates, consider the five-node
(linear) subnet of fig (a),
• where the delay metric is the number of hops. Suppose A is down
initially and all the other routers know this. In other words, they
have all recorded the delay to A as infinity.
• When A comes up, the other routers learn about it via the vector
exchanges.
• At the time of the first exchange,
• B learns that its left neighbor has zero delay to A. B now makes an
entry in its routing table that A is one hop away to the left. All the
other routers still think that A is down.
The count-to-infinity problem

The count-to-infinity problem.

 Link State Routing
Each router must do the following five steps:
1. Discover its neighbors, learn their network
address.
2. Measure the delay or cost to each of its neighbors.
3. Construct a packet telling all it has just learned.
4. Send this packet to all other routers.
5. Compute the shortest path to every other router.
 1). Discovering Your
Neighbors

 Send “Hello” packet on each point-to-point line. Destination node replies with its
address.
Learning about the Neighbors

(a) Nine routers and a LAN. (b) A graph model of (a).

2.) Measuring Line Cost

 Send an “ECHO” packet over the line.

 Destination is required to respond to “ECHO” packet immediately.
 Measure the time required for this operation.
 Question: Should we measure just the time it takes to transmit the
packet, or should we include the time that the packet waits in the
queue?
 Argument 2:
• We should include the time that the packet spends in the
queue, as this provides a more accurate picture of the real
delays.
• We should only include the transmission times, otherwise, the
network is likely to oscillate between preferred paths.

• If only bandwidth is considered (load is ignored), this problem

does not occur.

• To avoid oscillations in the choice of the best path, it may be

wise to distribute the load over multiple lines, with some
known fraction going over each line.
Measuring Line Cost

A subnet in which the East and West parts are connected by

two lines.
Building Link State Packets

(a) A subnet. (b) The link state packets for this subnet.
Distributing the Link State Packets
• Use selective flooding
• Sequence numbers prevent duplicate packets from being propagated
• Lower sequence numbers are rejected as obsolete
• This algorithm has a few problems but is manageable.
• First: If the sequence number wrap-around, (use 32-bit Sequence
Number, one link per second, it would take 137 years to wrap around.).
• Second: If a router ever crashes, it will lose track of its Sequence
Number. If its starts again at 0, the next packet will be rejected as a
duplicate.
• Third: if a sequence number is ever corrupted.
 The solution to all these problems is to indicate the age of each packet
after the sequence number and decrement it once per second. When the
age hits zero, the information from the router is discarded.
Distributing the Link State
Packets
The packet buffer for router B in the previous slide (Fig. 5-
13).
 Computing the New Routes
 Dijkstra’s Shortest Path algorithm is used to determine the
shortest path to each destination.
 The Network Layer in the Internet
• The IP Protocol
• IP Addresses
• Internet Control Protocols
• OSPF – The Interior Gateway Routing Protocol
• BGP – The Exterior Gateway Routing Protocol
• Internet Multicasting
• Mobile IP
• IPv6
 Design Principles for Internet
1. Make sure it works.
2. Keep it simple.
3. Make clear choices.
4. Exploit modularity.
5. Expect heterogeneity.
6. Avoid static options and parameters.
7. Look for a good design; it need not be perfect.
8. Be strict when sending and tolerant when receiving.
9. Think about scalability.
10. Consider performance and cost.
Collection of Subnetworks

The Internet is an interconnected collection of many networks.

The IP Protocol
The IPv4 (Internet Protocol) header.
The IP Protocol (2)
Some of the IP options.
The Main IPv6 Header

The IPv6 fixed header (required).

Extension Headers

5-69

IPv6 extension headers.

 Extension Headers (2)

The hop-by-hop extension header for large datagrams (jumbograms).

Extension Headers (3)

The extension header for routing.

 IP Addressing
 IPv4: 32-bit addresses
 Usually written in dotted notation, e.g. 192.168.21.76
 Each number is a byte
 Stored in Big Endian order

0 8 16 24 31
Decimal 192 168 21 76

Hex C0 A8 15 4C

Binary 11000000 10101000 00010101 48

01001100
 IP Addressing and Forwarding
 Routing Table Requirements
 For every possible IP, give the next hop
 But for 32-bit addresses, 232 possibilities!
 Too slow: 48GE ports and 4x10GE needs 176Gbps bandwidth
DRAM: ~1-6 Gbps; TCAM is fast, but 400x cost of DRAM
 Hierarchical address scheme
 Separate the address into a network and a host

0 31
Pfx Network Host

Known by Known by edge

49

all routers (LAN) routers

 Classes of IP Addresses
0 1 8 16 24 31
 Class A Example: MIT
0 Ntwk Host
18.*.*.*

1-126
0 2 8 16 24 31
Example: NEU
 Class B 10 Network Host
129.10.*.*
128-191
0 3 8 16 24 31
Example:
 Class C 110 Network Host
216.63.78.*
50

192-223
How Do You Get IPs?

 IP address ranges controlled by IANA

 Internet Assigned Number Authority

 Roots go back to 1972, ARPANET, UCLA
 Today, part of ICANN
 IANA grants IPs to regional authorities
 ARIN (American Registry of Internet Numbers) may grant you a
range of IPs
 You may then advertise routes to your new IP range
 There are now secondary markets, auctions, …

51
Two Level Hierarchy

Networ
Pfx Host
k

Subtree size
determined by …
network class 52
 Class Sizes

Way too big

Class Prefix Network Number of Classes Hosts per Class
Bits Bits
A 1 7 27 – 2 = 126 224 – 2 = 16,777,214
(0 and 127 are reserved) (All 0 and all 1 are reserved)
B 2 14 214 = 16,398 216 – 2 = 65,534
(All 0 and all 1 are reserved)
C 3 21 221 = 2,097,512 28 – 2 = 254
(All 0 and all 1 are reserved)
Total: 2,114,036

Too many Too small to

network IDs be useful 53
 Subnets
 Problem: need to break up large A and B classes
 Solution: add another layer to the hierarchy
 From the outside, appears to be a single network
 Only 1 entry in routing tables
 Internally, manage multiple subnetworks
 Split the address range using a subnet mask

Pfx Ntwk Subnet Host

Subnet Mask: 11111111 11111111 11000000 00000000
54
 Subnet Example
 Extract network:

IP Address: 10110101 11011101 01010100 01110010

Subnet Mask: & 11111111 11111111 11000000 00000000
Result: 10110101 11011101 01000000 00000000

 Extract host:
IP Address: 10110101 11011101 01010100 01110010
Subnet Mask: & ~(11111111 11111111 11000000 00000000)
Result: 00000000 00000000 00010100 01110010
55
Internet control ptotocols
 ICMP –Internetcontrol message protocol
 ARP- Address Resolution Protocol
 DHCP- Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol
Internet Control Message Protocol
The principal ICMP message types.
ARP– The Address Resolution
Protocol
Three interconnected /24 networks: two Ethernets and an FDDI ring.
Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol
Operation of DHCP.
Multi-Protocol
Label Switch
(MPLS)
What is MPLS?
 From MPLS Resource center:
 “MPLS stands for "Multiprotocol Label Switching". In an MPLS
network, incoming packets are assigned a "label" by a "label edge
router (LER)". Packets are forwarded along a "label switch path
(LSP)" where each "label switch router (LSR)" makes forwarding
decisions based solely on the contents of the label. At each hop,
the LSR strips off the existing label and applies a new label which
tells the next hop how to forward the packet.

 Label Switch Paths (LSPs) are established by network operators for

a variety of purposes, such as to guarantee a certain level of
performance, to route around network congestion, or to create IP
tunnels for network-based virtual private networks. In many ways,
LSPs are no different than circuit-switched paths in ATM or Frame
Relay networks, except that they are not dependent on a
particular Layer 2 technology.

 An LSP can be established that crosses multiple Layer 2 transports

such as ATM, Frame Relay or Ethernet. Thus, one of the true
promises of MPLS is the ability to create end-to-end circuits, with
specific performance characteristics, across any type of transport
medium, eliminating the need for overlay networks or Layer 2 only
control mechanisms.”
What is MPLS?
 OK now in plain English now please?
 Packets enter MPLS Network at a
“Label Edge Router” (LER)
 LER Affix a label to the packet and
forwards it to the MPLS network
 Label switches in the network at each
hop makes forwarding decision solely
based on the label. That decision is
made based on a pre-established
“Label Switch Path” (LSP).
 Labels can be integrated with existing
L2 info such as DLCI or ATM VCs.
 Diagram in class.
MPLS Motivation
 Originaldrivers towards label
switching:
 Designed to make routers faster
 ATM switches were faster than routers
 Fixedlength label lookup faster than
longest match used by IP routing
 Allowa device to do the same job as a
router with performance of ATM switch
 Enabled IP + ATM integration
 Mapping of IP to ATM had become very
complex, hence simplify by replacing ATM
signalling protocols with IP control
protocols
 MPLS Motivation
 Growth and evolution of the Internet
 The need to evolve routing algorithm
 The need for advanced forwarding algorithm
 routing vs. forwarding (switching)
 routing: flexibility
 forwarding: price/performance
 Can we forward/switch IP packets?
 Allow speed of L2 switching at L3
 Router makes L3 forwarding decision based on a single field:
similar to L2 forwarding  Sppppppeeeeed
Some MPLS Benefits
 Traffic Engineering - the ability to set the path traffic will take
through the network, and the ability to set performance
characteristics for a class of traffic

 VPNs - using MPLS, service providers can create IP tunnels

throughout their network, without the need for encryption or
end-user applications

 Layer 2 Transport - New standards being defined by the IETF's

PWE3 and PPVPN working groups allow service providers to carry
Layer 2 services including Ethernet, Frame Relay and ATM over an
IP/MPLS core

 Elimination of Multiple Layers - Typically most carrier networks

employ an overlay model where SONET/SDH is deployed at Layer
1, ATM is used at Layer 2 and IP is used at Layer 3. Using MPLS,
carriers can migrate many of the functions of the SONET/SDH and
ATM control plane to Layer 3, thereby simplifying network
management and network complexity. Eventually, carrier
networks may be able to migrate away from SONET/SDH and ATM
all-together, which means elimination of ATM's inherent "cell-tax"
in carrying IP traffic.
MPLS History
 IP over ATM
 IP Switching by Ipsilon
 Cell Switching Router (CSR) by Toshiba
 Tag switching by Cisco
 Aggregate Route-based IP Switching (IBM)
 IETF – MPLS
 http://www.ietf.org/html.charters/mpls-
charter.html
 RFC3031 – MPLS Architecture
 RFC2702 – Requirements for TE over MPLS
 RFC3036 – LDP Specification
MPLS and ISO model
(MPLS is a layer 2.5 protocol)
Applications

TCP UDP
IP
MPLS MPS
PPP FR ATM Ethernet DWDM
Physical

When a layer is added, no modification is needed

on the existing layers.
 Label Switching
 What is it?
 Goal: sending a packet from A to B
 We can do it in a broadcast way.
 We can use source routing where the source determines the path.
 How do we do it on the Internet today?
 Hop-by-hop routing: continue asking who is closer to B at every stop (hop).
Using Label on the network
(This is not new!)
 ATM: VPI/VCI
 Frame Relay: DLCI
 X.25: LCI (logical Channel Identifier)
 TDM: the time slot (Circuit Identification Code)
 Ethernet switching: ???

Q: do you see any commonality of these labels?

Label Substitution (swapping)

Label-A1 Label-B1

Label-A2 Label-B2

Label-A3 Label-B3

Label-A4 Label-B4
MPLS
A protocol to establish an end-to-end path from
source to the destination
A hop-by-hop forwarding mechanism
 Use labels to set up the path
 Require a protocol to set up the labels along the
path
 Itbuilds a connection-oriented service on the IP
network
Terminology
 LSR - Routers that support MPLS are called Label Switch Router
 LER - LSR at the edge of the network is called Label Edge Router
(a.k.a Edge LSR)
 Ingress LER is responsible for adding labels to unlabeled IP packets.
 Egress LER is responsible for removing the labels.
 Label Switch Path (LSP) – the path defined by the labels through
LSRs between two LERs.
 Label Forwarding Information Base (LFIB) – a forwarding table
(mapping) between labels to outgoing interfaces.
 Forward Equivalent Class (FEC) – All IP packets follow the same
path on the MPLS network and receive the same treatment at each
node.
 How does it work?

Add label at the remove label at

ingress LER the egress LER

LSR LSR LER

LER

IP IP #L1 IP #L2 IP #L3 IP

IP Label Label IP
Routing Switching Switching Routing
MPLS Operation

Label Path: R1 => R2 => R3 => R4

Label Forwarding Information
Base (LFIB)
Router Incoming Incoming Destination Outgoing Outgoing
Interface Network
Label Interface Label
(FEC)

R1 --- E0 172.16.1.0
S1 6

R2 6 S0 172.16.1.0
S2 11

R3 11 S0 172.16.1.0
S3 7

R4 7 S1 172.26.1.0
E0 --
Q: create LFIB for R4 => R3 => R2 => R1
 MPLS process
Label Switch Path

Routing Protocol

FEC FEC FEC

Label Swapping Label removal

Classification
LFIB LFIB LFIB
Label assignment

Layer 2 Layer 2 Layer 2

Layer 1 Layer 1 Layer 1

Ingress Core Egress

Node Node Node
 Label Encapsulation
Label information can be carried in a packet in a variety of ways:
 A small, shim label header inserted between the Layer 2 and
network layer headers.
 As part of the Layer 2 header, if the Layer 2 header provides
adequate semantics (such as ATM).
 As part of the network layer header (future, such as IPv6).

 In general, MPLS can be implemented over any media type,

including point-to-point, Ethernet, Frame Relay, and ATM links.
The label-forwarding component is independent of the network
layer protocol.
 Label Encapsulation

L2 ATM FR Ethernet PPP

Label VPI/VCI DLCI Shim Label

L2 Label IP Datagram
Header Header
MPLS Encapsulation is specified over various media
types. Labels may use existing format (e.g., VPI/VCI)
or use a new shim label format.
 Shim Header
 The Label (Shim Header) is represented as a
sequence of Label Stack Entry
 Each Label Stack Entry is 4 bytes (32 bits)
 20 Bits is reserved for the Label Identifier (also named
Label)

Label Exp S TTL

(20 bits) (3 bits) (1 bit) (8bits)

Label : Label value (0 to 15 are reserved for special use)

Exp : Experimental Use
S : Bottom of Stack (set to 1 for the last entry in the label)
TTL : Time To Live
Forward Equivalent Class (FEC) Classification

A packet can be mapped to a particular FEC based on the

following criteria:
•destination IP address,
•source IP address,
•TCP/UDP port,
•class of service (CoS) or type of service (ToS),
•application used,
•…
•any combination of the previous criteria.

Ingress Label FEC Egress Label

6 138.120.6.0/24 9
 Forwarding Equivalence
Classes (FEC)
LER LSR LER
LSR

IP1 IP1 #L1 IP1 #L2 IP1 #L3 IP1

IP2 IP2 #L1 IP2 #L2 IP2 #L3 IP2

IP3 IP3 #L4 IP3 #L5 IP3 #L6 IP3

IP4 IP4 #L4 IP4 #L5 IP4 #L6 IP4
• FEC = A group of packets that are treated the same way by a router.
• The concept of FECs provides for flexibility, scalability, and traffic engineering.
• In legacy routing, the ToS field is used to determine FEC at each hop. In MPLS
it is only done once at the network ingress.
Multicast routing
 Sending messages to group
 Construct spanning tree for each source node
 Construct spanning tree for each group
 Multicast Routing

(a) A network. (b) A spanning tree for the leftmost router.

(c) A multicast tree for group 1. (d) A multicast tree for group 2.
Multicast routing
 Alternate : Core based trees
 Single spanning tree per group with the root(core) near the middle of
group
 Router transmit message to core and core multicast to the group.
 Internetworking
• How Networks Differ
• How Networks Can Be Connected
• Concatenated Virtual Circuits
• Connectionless Internetworking
• Tunneling
• Internetwork Routing
• Fragmentation
Connecting Networks
A collection of interconnected networks.
How Networks Differ

5-43

Some of the many ways networks can differ.

How Networks Can Be Connected

(a) Two Ethernets connected by a switch.

(b) Two Ethernets connected by routers.
Concatenated Virtual Circuits

Internetworking using concatenated virtual circuits.

Connectionless Internetworking

A connectionless internet.
Tunneling
Tunneling a packet from Paris to London.
Tunneling (2)
Tunneling a car from France to England.
Internetwork Routing
(a) An internetwork. (b) A graph of the internetwork.
 Fragmentation

(a) Transparent fragmentation. (b) Nontransparent fragmentation.

 Fragmentation (2)

Fragmentation when the elementary data size is 1 byte.

(a) Original packet, containing 10 data bytes.
(b) Fragments after passing through a network with maximum packet
size of 8 payload bytes plus header.
(c) Fragments after passing through a size 5 gateway.